Waterlands

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Atlantic croakerShoulder season

Cape · North Carolina

Lupton Point

35.43°N · 76.53°W · Cape · Pamlico and Pungo Rivers

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Best score today · 5 PM · Atlantic croaker

80/100Great
Now
562 PM EST
Best window
3-7 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding0.3 ft ▲

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions

Thursday, Nov 12 · 3 PM

Time3P
Score60Good
Tide0.5 ft ▲Flooding
Wind4 kn SSWgusts 11 · steady
Air temp62°Mild
WeatherClear1% cloud
Water67°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Atlantic croaker is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NCDMF before you keep a fish.

Source: NCDMF · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Atlantic croaker is best here

Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 4 more weeks at shoulder

Atlantic croaker season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 4 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Atlantic croaker in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Lupton Point

Depth
1-7 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonAtlantic croaker

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.

About this spot

Fishing Lupton Point

Lupton Point is a cape in Pamlico and Pungo Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 1-7 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are little tunny, weakfish and black sea bass. It is peak season now for little tunny, weakfish, black sea bass and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for Atlantic croaker, spot, black drum and summer flounder. Little tunny peak from October through November. Weakfish peak from October through November. Black sea bass peak from March through April and from October through November.

Tackle & technique

Atlantic croaker
Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
Little tunny
Little tunny travel fast in schools that pin bait against inlets, points, jetties and tide rips, usually within a few miles of shore and often in less than 60 feet. Stay off the school's path, wait for it to surface within range, and cast small metal or epoxy jigs with a fast retrieve. When fish stay down, troll small feathers along bait edges and color changes to find them.
Weakfish
Weakfish hold along channel edges, grass beds, oyster bars and bridge shadows in bays and sounds, usually in 5 to 40 feet of water, and feed hardest at dawn, dusk and after dark. Swim soft plastics or bucktails slowly near the bottom, or drift peeler crab and bloodworms. They have soft mouths, so keep the drag light and the pressure steady.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Pasture Point

    Cape · 0.4 mi

    65
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 65
    • Weakfish 61
    • Black sea bass 60

    8 kt NEH 8:47 PM · 0.7 ftL 2:55 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Green Point

    Cape · 1.7 mi

    65
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 65
    • Black sea bass 61
    • Weakfish 61

    8 kt NEH 8:47 PM · 0.7 ftL 2:55 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Persimmon Point

    Cape · 1.7 mi

    65
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 65
    • Weakfish 61
    • Black sea bass 60

    8 kt NEH 8:47 PM · 0.7 ftL 2:55 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Parmalee Point

    Cape · 2.2 mi

    65
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 65
    • Weakfish 60
    • Black sea bass 59

    8 kt NEH 8:47 PM · 0.7 ftL 2:55 AM · 0.3 ft

Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with NCDMF before you keep a fish.